The Great Escape
by efachepis97
Summary: Andrew Parker, 7th year Ravenclaw from Switzerland and Teddy Lupin's best friend, is picked to participate in the MoM's betrothal program to 'boost the magical population of the British Isles'. With nothing left to lose, he decides to try his luck and makes a run for it. How will the hunt across magical Europe for him end and what consequences will it have for magical Britain?
1. Chapter 1

**The Great Escape**

 _12th of April, 2018_

 _Author's note: For about one and a half years I have been reading fanfiction, mainly about the Harry Potter and Game of Thrones universes. Like many people I have read the HP books multiple times and devoured all other information I could find about it. Sadly I can't say the same for Game of Thrones. I started watching the show first and have decided to finish it and then read the books in a couple of years time. By then I won't have the plot lines as clearly in my mind as I do now and I will enjoy them more._

 _This story is the first that I will publish on this website. I've been working on it for a couple of days now and have about five chapters written. I don't know how often I'll be able to update though. I'll do my best to keep a constant flow, but I can't make any promises._

 _As far as other stories go, I have two other Potter fictions in the works._

 _I appreciate any reviews, positive or negative. I haven't let anyone read my writing yet and would love to hear an unbiased opinion._

 _The rights to anything you recognise in this work of fiction belong to the brilliant Mrs. J.K. Rowling. The title isn't mine either, I nicked it from the great movie starring Steve McQueen and Richard Attenborough. I claim only the Protagonist. You may fight over the rest._

 _And now, enjoy! ... I hope..._

 _Chapter 1_

On Friday morning in Potions class I silently counted the seconds until the clock would strike twelve. I guess most people would expect this from a seventeen-year old five minutes away from lunch, but I wasn't nervous due to hunger. No, I couldn't care less what the elves were serving today, I wouldn't be eating it anyway if everything went according to my plans.

I couldn't help it, my were glued to the ancient clock behind Professor Vance's head, my left hand clutched the letter in my robe pocket and my Drought of living Death was sizzling to a ruin in front of me. Some of my classmates kept looking at me from time to time, definitely confused, but I couldn't care less.

When the Bell rang I fought the urge to run out the door. Instead I packed up my things as I did every Friday, I bottled and turned in my ruined potion as I did every Friday and I said goodbye to professor Vance, as I did every Friday. Little did she know that this would be our final goodbye.

I followed my classmates out of the dungeon, but we parted ways fairly quickly. I told them that I had forgotten something in the Tower and I would catch up later. If I failed to show up, as I definitely would, they would assume that I was meeting Ted in the Kitchens.

As soon as they had rounded the corner I sped in the opposite direction, heading towards the Headmistress' office. I had to be quick now. I ran when nobody was around, otherwise I strode purposefully through the corridors. When I arrived at the statue guarding McGonagall's office I stopped and caught my breath while silently thanking Merlin that no one stopped me to ask where I was headed at lunchtime. They'd know soon enough anyway…

After a few deep breaths I stood up straight and gave the silent Guardian the password. When I stepped onto the moving staircase I checked my pockets one last time. In the left, the Ministry letter and two black balls of Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes' Peruvian instant darkness powder with a remotely controlled detonator. In the Right pocket, another two darkness powders and a dungbomb. My wand was strapped in my dragonleather wand-holster on my right arm.

As I rose further up, I thought over my bad luck once more.

I suppose it started a year ago when the Ministry first passed the law. Due to dwindling numbers of magical children being born in Britain the Ministry re-introduced the Betrothal act of 1365. It allowed the government to betrothe two individuals and force them to marry. In the original law the Ministry had the right to ensure that the marriage had been consummated. They had removed that particular paragraph before reintroducing the law, but the rest remained the same. The goal was to 'repopulate' magical Britain and to break down the barriers that still existed between pure-, halfbloods and muggleborns. Inbreeding was continuing in pureblood circles and increasing in halfblooded ones. Muggleborns increasingly decide to return to the muggle world. Heck, I was planning to go to university after Hogwarts as well…

Anyway, to break the barriers they now paired young teens from different 'bloodgroups' with one another. A year ago they paired the first couple, a halfblood and a muggleborn. It worked 'well', according to the ministry, meaning that the two of them gave up fighting after a couple of months and started to get along. Now they were two friends with a ring each and a baby that they could share in six months time.

Since then a couple of other matches had been made. Some put up more of a fight, others folded quickly. All in all the Ministry thinks their program was a success, and now they'd gotten to me. Seventh year Ravenclaw muggleborn from Switzerland. They'd probably pair me with a halfblood, or maybe they'd go for a pureblooded gall if they were confident enough.

Well, it didn't matter either way, I wasn't going to play their game. I wasn't going to let them violate my rights without a fight. And so, I bottled my righteous rage, calmed my nerves, put on my best pokerface and entered the office.

The five people in the room turned to face me as I entered. Headmistress McGonagall sat calmly behind her desk, her hands folded upon it and as usual her face was hard to read. For all I knew she was devastated or elated behind that mask of iron will and discipline that she wore. Beside her stood a plump woman dressed in standard Ministry robes. She seemed to be around thirty years old and wore large glasses with a thick black frame. She was smiling cheerfully, as if she was having the time of her life and a few ink-stains littered her hands and robes. She was a bureaucrat, a paper-pusher, probably a stickler for rules.

On the opposite side of the room stood the other three. The older man and woman, evidently my bride-to-be's parents, were well dressed and very clearly seething with anger.

Her father was taller than I and dressed in tailored grey robes. His hair was a dark blond colour and combed to the back. He held his shoulders squared and I felt that this was a man to be listened to. Like his wife, his whole posture and attire screamed of wealth and nobility. He was at that moment staring at me with barely hidden contempt.

His wife was shorter than him, reaching his shoulders. Her hair was pulled back in an elegant knot and she too seemed to dislike me. The way she held her head just a bit to highly suggested that a foul stench had just entered her delicate nose.

Between them sat their daughter, and when I saw her I stopped in the middle of my stride. She was stunning. Beautiful. Coherent thought left my head.

Like her mother she had dark brown hair that she wore freely. Her shapely, red lips stood out against her soft, pale skin, but what captivated me most were her eyes. They were an icy, pale blue with a darker ring surrounding the iris.

"Ah, Mister Parker, come in. Now that we are all here we can start."

McGonagall's voice shook me from my reverie and I nodded. The Ministry employee came up to me and introduced herself. I didn't catch her name, I was still thinking about the beautiful witch in the room. From her tie I gathered that she was a Slytherin. I knew she wasn't in my year, but I guessed she was a sixth year. I recognised her from the hallways, of course (how could I not?), but I couldn't put a name to her face.

The ministry worker stood on the right side of the desk while my 'fiancé' and her parents took the three seats to the left of the desk. Once again I silently thanked Merlin for making things easier for me. Like this I had a better angle with my wand-hand to do what I had to do. I stepped to my vacant chair, put down my rucksack beside it and sat down.

For a few seconds the Ministry worker just smiled at us before she turned to me.

"Mister Meier, may I ask where your parents are? After all, they should be here for such an important occasion."

She said this last part with a slight chuckle and smiled that fake, toothy smile at me. She irritated me immensely.

"I'm of age, there's no reason for them to be here."

"Nevertheless, they should be here for such a significant event. Don't you think?"

"I'm not forcing my parents to fly from Switzerland to a remote corner of the Scottish Highlands just so they can see me sign a document."

On the left of me, my future father in law snorted at that comment. I wasn't sure if it was a derisive laugh or if he agreed with me. However, my comment caused the Ministry worker to drop her cheery façade for a few moments to scowl at me. Too soon for my liking, she returned to her sickening grin.

"Very well, as you know the two of you have been selected for the Ministry of Magic's Betrothal program. Now, marriage is…"

I stopped paying attention. If everything went according to plan I wouldn't need any of that information anyway. Instead I focused on the room and all the important details for my plan. To my right I was happy to note that there was still a fire burning in the fireplace from when the Ministry official arrived. On the sill above stood a little flowerpot full with floopowder. I then glanced at the other occupants of the room. The Ministry Worker was still droning on about the merits and responsibilities of marriage. I was happy to note that her wand was still in her handbag. The small family to my left was focused on what the bureaucrat was saying. None of them had their wands in their hands, so I assumed that the parents kept theirs in their breast- or other sort of pocket. I glanced at their wrists and couldn't see anything that would indicate a wandholster like the one I was wearing. I couldn't be sure but I had no choice to gamble on the fact that they would be too surprised to react and be slow on the draw. It was a serious risk, but I had to take it.

Lastly, I turned my gaze on McGonagall. To my dismay she held her wand in her hand. This had been my greatest worry. McGonagall was the most talented witch I knew and if I didn't get the draw on her my plans and future would be ruined.

She was looking straight at me, a bit confused at first but when her gaze caught my attention she gave me a pointed look. Like a scolded schoolboy I gave my full attention back to the Ministry worker until I was certain that McGonagall was no longer paying me any attention. I had broken out in cold sweat under her scrutiny. Her disabling me before I got to make my move was my greatest worry and now she had taken notice of my strange behaviour. The feeling of unease in my stomach was spreading and I was having difficulty of keeping my hand from shaking. I gripped the armrest harder and tried desperately to keep my face neutral. To calm myself down I listened to the Ministry worker once more.

"… Paragraph twelve is all about the timeframe in which the second and third children should be born. Ms. Greengrass will have…"

Greengrass. That was her name. slowly , I pieced together all I knew about Greengrass.

Elizabeth, Elizabeth Greengrass. Sixth year Slytherin, used to go out with Teddy's friend Luke, one of the Slytherin Chasers. She was a Pureblood. Hah, the Ministry have dared to pair a Pureblood and a Muggleborn. Imagine their faces when it's the Muggleborn who makes a fuss…

Calmer once more, I looked around the office. Most of the portraits of Headmasters and Headmistresses gone by were dozing or absent. A select few were paying attention tot the lecture going on in the office below. They'd all heard it a number of times before.

However, one of the portraits paying attention to the conversation was the one directly behind Professor McGonagall. When I looked at the Wizard with the long white beard and half-moon spectacles he held my gaze and arched one eyebrow. Quickly, I looked away, terrified once more.

McGonagall suspected I was up to something, Dumbledore knew I was up to something but was curious enough to let me proceed for the moment. I was on very thin ice.

"Mister Parker, are you alright? You look rather pale."

My heart was beating at two hundred miles an hour. Everyone was looking at me. McGonagall's brows were furrowed and over her shoulder Dumbledore leaned forward in his seat, as if to hear better.

"'M fine. Just a bit nervous…", I lied quickly and tried to smile. I only managed a pained grimace. My eyes darted to the left and I found Elizabeth peering at me. Her head was tilted to the left and her eyebrows frowned a little. I quickly averted my gaze.

The Ministry worker said something like 'perfectly natural' and continued with her lecture.

I had to do it soon. I wouldn't have much time, the portraits would have aurors here within minutes. I slipped my left hand into my pocket. I picked up a Fishermen's Friend, which I always kept with me, with my fingers as I lodged a Darkness Powder bomb in the palm of my hand. I extracted my hand, put the sweet in my mouth and rested my hand along with the bomb on my thigh. Dumbledore was now looking straight at me. I held my breath, certain that he'd rat me out. I started raising my right hand, ready to flick my wand out and take my chances when he winked at me. Relief flooded through me, but I was careful not to show it. I still had a long way to go but at least I had an ally in the room.

I waited for another minute before I raised my right hand and scratched my nose. Once again Dumbledore was looking straight at me. I winked.

Time seemed to slow down as I made my next move. McGonagall was focused on the Ministry worker and I lowered my hand. My gaze was fixed on her as I flicked my wrist and my wand jumped into my hand. The Headmistress glanced over at the sudden movement and her eyes grew wide when I pointed my wand at her. She had no time to react, I had gotten the drop on her.

As my slumber charm struck her chest (wouldn't want to risk a heart attack by using a stunner) I was already turning on the bureaucrat. Her eyes grew wide and her mouth widened in shock but she didn't get much further than that. She hadn't even hit the floor, stunned I might add, before I was out of my seat and had dropped the Peruvian Powder. As the room turned dark I grabbed my Rucksack from the floor and moved back a couple of paces. Since I was the caster of the bomb I could make out the silhouette of the objects and people around me. A few seconds later the Greengrasses lay stunned on the carpeted floor.

Then I knew that I had to act quickly, some of the portraits would already be running to the Auror department. I detonated the second darkness powder in my left pocket and transfigured my robes into a rich purple colour. I changed the colour of my hair and strode towards the fireplace. I thumbled in my right pocket until I had the two remaining powder bombs and the dungbomb in my hand. I charmed them to detonate within the next 5 minutes and then threw them into the office. I grabbed some floopowder from the pot and then vanished said pot. Anything that made following my difficult was great right then. I stepped into the fireplace, threw down my powder and as the green flames rose around me I called out my destination: "The Leaky Cauldron!"

 _I hope you enjoyed this first chapter. I have to admit that the idea of the betrothal law is something I nicked from various fanfictions I've read. The Protagonist is based to a large extent on myself. The main thought behind the story was simply: What would I do (or at least try to do) in such a situation? And this is what I came up with._

 _I hope you have a lovely day and please review ;)_


	2. Chapter 2

_Author's note:_

 _Hi_

 _I just wanted to use this Author's note to correct a small mistake I made in the last chapter. The first time I mentioned the Protagonists name I used the surname 'Meier'. As you might know 'Meier' is one of the most common names in the German speaking part of Europe and is extremely common in Switzerland as well (along with 'Müller'). However, I decided to change the name to 'Parker' and must have missed that first blunder when I went over the Chapter before uploading it. Without further ado:_

 _Chapter 2_

Seconds later I stepped out of the fireplace of the dusty Wizarding pub in London. the lunch crowd was already there and I quickly stepped out of the way as the next customer popped out of the fireplace.

There were only a few unoccupied tables, but I made my way over to the entrance of muggle London instead. Halfway to the door when I recognized a group of middle aged men, one dressed in bright red auror robes and the other two in those purple pin striped suits which clashed horribly with their ginger hair. Of course, anyone in wizarding Britain would recognize the Harry Potter, now head of the DMLE, and the two Weasley brothers who ran Weasley's Wizard Wheezes; Ron and George Weasley. The problem was that they just might recognize me. After all, I spent a large part of my summer holidays with my best friend Ted Lupin and therefore knew the whole Potter/Weasley clan quite well.

I felt the beads of cold sweat form on my brow as I passed by the table, but luckily none of them spared me a second glance and as I reached the door to muggle London my heart was still pounding. I transfigured my robes once more into a leather jacket and stepped out onto the street.

The race was now on. If I was lucky I had five minutes before the aurors stepped out of the Leaky Cauldron fireplace to start hunting me. Of course, they would probably mention to their boss that his godson's best friend was currently on the run and just passed by him two minutes before.

From the side of the curb I hailed a cab and got in.

"Where to?"

"Russel Square park."

The taxi started off and wound its way through the streets of London. I love this city but at that moment I couldn't enjoy the ride. We got stuck in traffic once or twice, which made me nervous, but we arrived at our destination fairly quickly. I paid the fair and hopped out of the cab.

Instead of heading straight for the tube I entered the park. In the summer before my seventh year started I spent my last few days in muggle London with my family, like we always did. We had gone to this café in the middle of the park that I had enjoyed and that was where I was headed.

Cold in my leather jacket in December and my nerves blown to bits due to my new status as 'fugitive', I practically ran through the park to the building at its centre. I opened the door and a warm gust of air greeted me, steaming up my glasses the same way they did as when I entered a restaurant while skiing in winter.

The café was quite full with business-men and -women sitting at the tables, their phones lying next to the water glasses and neat little Christmas decorations. I strode past the tables and entered the men's room in the back, where I locked myself in a cabin and placed my Rucksack on the loo. From its seemingly endless depths (thank Merlin once more for the extended space and weightless charm) I pulled my proper dark blue winter coat, a pair of jeans, a green beanie and some sneakers. I quickly changed and then conjured a mirror, which I stuck to the cabin wall. As I had practiced the night before, I transfigured my hair once more. I let it grow longer and I grew a full beard as well. Then I charmed my hair, beard and eyebrows black. Lastly, I changed the colour of my eyes from blue to brown and put in lenses instead of my usual glasses.

I cleaned up after myself, flushed the toilet for the benefit of others in the loo and left the café. I was sure that by then the aurors were already scouring Diagon Alley for me and trying to retrace my steps in Muggle London. I didn't have much time left.

From the park I quickly made my way to the Russel Square Tube station. The Piccadilly line runs through it and the next stop was King's Cross St. Pancras, the place I wanted to be.

I entered the station, paid my fare and got onto the next line.

Up until then I hadn't noticed anything or anyone unusual that would indicate that my pursuers had caught up to me yet. Normally wizards were easy to spot in the muggle world if you knew what to look for. They often wore purple and green and for some reason, that Teddy once explained but I have forgotten, they love to talk about the Scottish rugby team. I don't know, he may have been having me on…

As I said, wizards and witches are easy to spot. Something's always off about how they act and dress. I'd compare them to Asian tourists. Fascinated by everyday appliances like toilets and microwaves.

However, I wasn't dealing with 'civilian' wizards and witches. The ones after me had gone through years of training, and with a boss like Harry Potter who practically grew up in the muggle world it was certain that they'd received some training on how to handle it. Therefore, I was eyeing all of my fellow passengers and passers-by with distrust.

One thing worried me most and that was a device that Mr. Potter had once mentioned at dinner, when I was staying with Ted. According to him it was capable of measuring the ambient magic of people that are close by, like a Geiger counter for magic, if you will. That way, runaway wizards, such as myself, could be routed out of large muggle crowds. They'd position an auror with this device at bottlenecks of large squares where the culprit is bound to pass through. There was a catch to this device, though. It was about as large as a suitcase and hummed slightly when activated. If they'd already positioned such a device on my platform I'd be in a really tight spot.

As the tube pulled into King's Cross, I stood next to the door. When they slid open I strode through the station at a fast pace, which, of course, didn't raise any eyebrows at a station in London. I strode along the tunnel, glancing left and right at the passers-by. None of them seemed to be looking for anything or anyone, however, aurors would be trained not to let people know they were looking for them in a crowd. Each time I crossed someone in a suitcase I strained to hear a hum or the sound of someone turning on their heel, but it was difficult to hear anything over the sound of my pounding heart.

In the end I made it through the tube tunnels and to the northern ticket hall without any aurors arresting me. I got in line for my ticket at the booth closest to the wall, which meant that at least my back would be clear. I stood there and looked at the people around me. At the front of the cue some tourists were trying to buy their tickets. I was waiting behind an elderly woman who was dressed quite elegantly and behind me stood a man in a suit who was calling someone on his IPhone, explaining why it was a good idea to invest in a new gas line in northern Germany. Close by, a mother was trying to calm her toddler who was crying and in middle of the hall, some people in blue t-shirts stood, handing out leaflets about Brexit. If they were for or against I didn't know and didn't care. What was important was that there was no green and purple, no talk of Scottish rugby and no men or women with humming suitcases.

After a few minutes it was my turn and I walked up to the counter, where a man, seemingly in his mid-thirties, was waiting for me.

"How can I help you?"

"Hi," I said and shuffled a bit closer to the counter, since I had trouble hearing him through the glass. "Er…Yeah, could I have a ticket to Paris please?"

"Certainly, I'll just need to see an ID or passport."

"'course."

I pulled my wallet from the breast pocket of my coat. I always kept it with me when I went to Hogwarts, and it was where I kept my Swiss ID and the credit card my parents had organised for me. "For emergencies," they'd told me when we discussed it. Well, in my book this certainly qualified as an emergency.

I pulled them out and showed the ID to the clerk. He nodded and typed a few things into the computer he sat behind.

"The next Eurostar to Paris leaves in twenty minutes from the Eurostar platform nine. I can book you a seat on it if you wish."

I nodded. "That would be great."

Once I had gotten my ticket and payed I struck up my fast pace once more and made my way to the Eurostar. Again, I scrutinized the people brushing past me, straining my ears for humming sounds and trying to ignore my fast-paced heartbeat each time a suitcase passed by.

A few minutes later all that separated me from the train was an escalator. Glancing around I checked one last time if anyone suspicious had been following me and stepped on them. Only then did I realise the man standing next to the bottom of the escalator. He was wearing a grey overcoat and had an umbrella hanging from his elbow. He was reading a newspaper, no phone in sight, and at his feet lay a battered suitcase made of brown leather.

It felt as if someone had ripped the ground out from under my feet. My heart rate doubled and I just stood there, like a deer in the headlights. There was nothing I could do, I was halfway down the escalator, I couldn't turn back and start running up. That would alert them faster than that ruddy magical Geiger counter would. Helpless I sunk further and further, trembling despite my thick winter coat, my gaze fixed on the faceless stranger. He was focused on an article, not paying attention to the masses streaming past. He just had to listen to his little helper.

I was transfixed. My right hand was ready to flick forward once more, my left was gripping darkness powders. After what I thought was an eternity, I arrived at the bottom. My feet hit the end of the stairs before I remembered to step off and I stumbled. I leapt forward and caught myself before I could fall. Then, I spun around. The man was still reading. No hum, no wands drawn, no aurors. After a few seconds I sighed in relief and chuckled to myself. The man who had been behind me on the escalator looked at my strangely, but I ignored him. I turned once more. I moved down the platform along the Eurostar and stood before the doors. Freedom. With one last look over my shoulder, I stepped into the train. A small step for Wizard kind, a huge step for me.

 _Another small note down here, I didn't want to post it at the top since it contains info on this chapter. I apologize if there are any mistakes concerning the layout of the Eurostar platforms in St. Pancras international the way i described it here. I've never actually been on the Eurostar before so its entirely possible that I made a mistake. I just wrote it this way so it would work with the plot._

 _Cheerio_


	3. Chapter 3

_Author's note:_

 _I know it's been a long time since I updated this fic. I'm off to a great start, aren't I? First fic I actually upload and I neglect to update for nearly 5 months... Well done me. All I can say in my defense is that I had exams to study for like any other student... which is a shitty excuse._

 _So all I can really say is that I'm sorry for neglecting this story._

 _Anyway, here's the next chapter._

 _Chapter 3_

It wasn't until lunchtime that I realised something was wrong. I was one of the first one's there because I had a free period before lunch on Fridays. I always made sure to be there early on Fridays since Andrew and I had a deal with the elves that they'd send up some special things we ordered to specific places on days we could definitely snatch the right spot. And it was due to the fact that I was focused on my rare rib-eye steak that I failed to notice that he hadn't come into the hall with the rest of the Ravenclaw seventh years that took advanced potions. I was just finishing off my desert, apple pie with vanilla ice cream, when Keith Donnelly came over. He was Andrew's Irish roommate and potions partner. He was still a few metres away when he called out to me.

"Hey Lupin!"

I glanced up from my pie and, seeing who it was, put down my fork. "What's up Keith?"

"Have ya seen Andrew?"  
Confused, I looked over my shoulder to the Ravenclaw table. Sure enough, my best mate was nowhere to be seen. "Nah, I haven't. Wasn't he with you in potions?"

By now Keith had reached me and sat down on the bench so that he was facing the aisle, rather than the table. He leaned on his elbows and looked at me. "Yeah, he was. But when we left he said he'd forgotten somethin' in the tower and went to gedit. That was three quarters of an hour ago. We figured you two went to have lunch in the kitchens again, but here y'are."

"Weird," I replied and picked up my fork again. For a moment I thought he'd gotten whacked in the corridors but dismissed the idea quickly. The times when the two of us had gotten beaten up in the corridors was long gone. Andrew was probably the best duellist in the castle, bar the professors. No one was stupid enough to attack either of us anymore.

"Maybe he went to the kitchens by himself," I finally told Keith. "You know how he gets, sometimes he just needs a little down time. He'll turn up later again."

Keith nodded. "Y'er probably right. We were just wonderin'." Then he got up and turned to wave at me. "See ya later Ted, enjoy yer pie," and with that he walked away.

I watched him leave for a moment before I turned back to my plate to finish my slice of apple pie. It was a bit strange for Andrew to miss lunch, but it wasn't unheard of. Sometimes he just needed a little time to himself and I respected that. Unconcerned, I cleaned my plate with my fork and stood up from the house table. Defence against the dark arts would start in about half an hour and I would see Andrew there.

 _Extremely short chapter, I know... but I'll be uploading the next chapter in a few minutes so I hope you don't mind too much._


	4. Chapter 4

_Author's note:_

 _Well, here's the next one. Enjoy!_

 _Chapter 4_

I looked out the window and watched as the English countryside passed by. For the first quarter of an hour or so of the ride we passed through greater London, soon we'd enter the tunnel that led under the channel to France and, as they say it over there, _la liberté_.

During the first few minutes of the ride I was intensely nervous. People were still walking up and down the aisles, stowing away luggage or running up the train to find their seat. Soon everyone settled down and a sense of security came over me. The more time passed, the happier and safer I felt. It had worked! I'd given the Ministry the slip! I was tempted to order a bottle of champagne to celebrate my success, my great escape!

Still, these feelings didn't stop me from glancing up every time another passenger got up or passed through the train. 'Don't count your nargles before you've kissed', or something like that. Teddy always said such weird things, even by wizarding standards. Perhaps he spent too much time with his Aunt Luna…

For that reason, I kept my Rucksack on my knees instead of stowing it above. If I needed to make a quick exit, I had to keep everything close by.

After some time, a woman came by to inspect our tickets. I asked her how far away we were from the tunnel and she told me that we'd be going underground in about five minutes time. That's when a couple entered the carriage from the same side as her. They were both wearing light beige trench-coats and they were strolling along the carriage, glancing at the passengers they crossed. She carried no luggage, he a black leather suitcase.

The sense of security and triumph vanished instantly. Something was wrong. My heart sped up once more and I averted my gaze. My hands started shaking and my thoughts were jumping all over the place. I was panicking, plain and simple. I fought for control and after a few deep breaths I could start to think clearly once more.

Get out. Get out of the carriage. That's all I could think of. The couple were still a few rows away. One last time I looked out the window. We were crossing a field with a lone tree in it. I memorised that picture, got up slowly, shouldered my bag and headed in the opposite direction. As I passed the ticket control woman I smiled at her and reached into my right coat pocket. Luckily, I'd had the good sense to distribute all my remaining darkness powders into my robe and coat pockets. I took out the two powder bombs and switched them into my left hand so my wand arm would be free. I glanced over my shoulder and caught the female auror as she averted her eyes from me.

On shaking legs I made my way to the back of the carriage. I wanted to head for the loo and wait them out. If they passed by it was a fluke, if not I'd apparate and find another way to the continent.

As I approached the door I looked through the small window in it and saw inside the next carriage. Down the middle two women were strolling along, wearing beige trench-coats and carrying a black leather suitcase.

"Shit."

There was no longer any doubt in my mind about who they were. At that moment, one of the women in the next carriage looked up and saw me. She held my gaze and spoke into her sleeve, as if there were a microphone there.

I dropped the darkness powder and waited for it to engulf me. As the first people started shrieking, I apparated away.

When I appeared next to the tree I looked around me, hoping that the aurors hadn't been able to place a tracking spell on me. Then I started running. It was over a completely open field and I expected the red flashes of stunning spells to surround me at any moment. They never came and I soon reached a country lane. For a few seconds I tried to catch my breath and nervously I kept an eye on the field. Nothing moved except the branches of the tree I landed next to, which moved with the slight breeze. I looked down the muddy lane I'd ran to and made out the furthest spot I could still clearly see, then I apparated there. From there on I set down the path on foot. I had no idea how well the Ministry could track magic across the country. After all, they always found out about underage magic… maybe they could sense concentrations of magic in otherwise magic-free areas. Maybe they couldn't and I had nothing to worry about. One way or the other I decided to use as little magic as possible from now on. I'd like to see the ministry track a muggle throughout England.

And so, I started my trek through the English countryside. It didn't take too long until I hit a proper road and so I turned right on that one, walking along the pavement. Soon I reached a small village, which luckily had an ATM machine, and so I let out some muggle money.

In the local pub I ate the lunch I had missed all day. I hadn't realised how hungry I was until I sat down in there and ordered some fish and chips. As I waited I got up and walked to the bar. When I asked if I could use their phone the barman looked at me a bit strangely and showed me to the back of the room. There I threw a few coins in and dialled my home number in Switzerland. My Mother picked up the phone.

"Parker," was all she said, but I was relieved to hear her voice.

"Hey mum, it's me, Andrew," I said a bit apprehensively.

"Andrew? Why are you calling? Aren't you at school?" My mother sounded confused and I couldn't blame her. She had trailed off slightly towards the end of the question.

"No, I'm not," I replied. I quickly continued since she wanted to cut in with another question. "Look. There's something I need to explain."

"Go on." She didn't sound too happy. A few seconds of silence lapsed until I started talking again.

"Well… I'll have to start with a law our Ministry passed about a year ago. See, they introduced a law about a year ago that gives them the power to force people to marry-"

"What? Did you say marry? Surely they can't-"

"They can and they do," I sighed and looked around the pub. The place was empty aside from me, the barkeep and the elderly gentleman reading the paper in the corner. No one had entered since I started the call. "Look, the magical population here in Britain has been growing smaller since before those wars McGonagall mentioned to you. Mainly it's because people from these different blood-groups don't really mix. You know, like, because you and Dad aren't magical but I am, that means some girl with a witch and a wizard as parents refuses to talk to me. It's ridiculous really."

"And to solve this problem this Ministry has decided that forcing people to marry is the solution?" She sounded disbelieving.

"Yeah."

"Andrew, they didn't…?"

I sighed. "Yeah, they did."

She gasped. I could picture it clearly. She was probably in our living room, looking out the window without focusing on anything, her left hand in front of her mouth as she gripped the phone with her right. It was silent for a few seconds. "But they can't do this! It must be illegal, they can't force people to marry! It's against people's rights-"

"Mum. Mum! Calm down!" I waited patiently as she became silent once more. "I agree with you completely, but fact is that they can do it. They've already done it to about five other couples and nobody's done anything to stop them. They can't."

"But that's like a dictatorship! And to think in 2017… Why didn't you tell us?" The accusational tone was unmistakeable.

"I didn't want you to worry. The chances were slim and-"

"Well they aren't slim anymore! You should have told us! What a stupid thing to do!"

I headed her off before she really got into it. "I know, I know. It was stupid and now I'm in the shits-"

"Don't curse."

I smiled. Only mothers… "Yeah, well, it seemed like a good word for this situation."

She sighed. "Where are you now? I thought you said phones didn't work at school?"

"Yeah, they don't. I'm in a pub somewhere in Kent, I think."

She made a disbelieving sound at the back of her throat. "What are you doing in Kent?"

"Well, I'm sort of on the run at the moment…" And so, I explained everything that had happened in the last couple of hours. She took it rather well, all in all. She never really freaked and kept up pretty well with my story.

"So, you were planning to call us from Paris then?"

"Yeah, but they got me on the train."

"Oh, Andrew, what kind of a situation did you get yourself into…" she sounded distraught. "What are you going to do now?"

"Dunno. Probably go to the coast and figure it out from there."

"I don't like this."

I snorted. "Neither do I, but what can I do?"  
She had no answer. "Is there something we can do?"  
"Nah, not really. I just called so you'd hear it from me. They'll contact you soon, you'll have to decide how you react. Either way it won't change my situation.

"I don't think I'll be able to contact you from now on. They'll probably try to listen in on your calls. I should make it to Switzerland within the next one or two weeks, I guess. I should be safe then. The Swiss won't send me back."

"And if they catch you?"

"Well, you'll find out through the papers if they don't allow me to contact you first…"

"Andrew."

"It's only the truth."

"And after that?"

"Well, I guess I'll spend some quality time in prison for assault and resisting arrest or something like that. They won't keep me too long. After that they'll probably force me to marry Greengrass anyway…"  
My mother didn't respond. It was silent on the line for a few seconds, mirroring the despair both of us felt. It was clear that she was worried, so worried that it drowned out her rage. But probably not for long. I racked my brain for a way to comfort her, but I couldn't think of anything that wasn't a lie. I couldn't lie to her now.

"Well, I'll see you soon. Love you."

"Be careful, sunshine, I love you too."

I hung up and went back to my table. The Fish and Chips had arrived and were cold by now. With a quick glance around I cast a quick warming charm and started to eat. Eat and think.


	5. Chapter 5

_Chapter 5_

When I arrived at the DADA classroom after lunch I joined the assembled 7th years who were waiting in front of the locked door. I greeted everyone with a smile and stood next to Leona Adams, a fellow Hufflepuff. As usual, all of the seventh years stood in a circle and talked as we waited for Professor MacMillan to arrive. There were a few students from every house and normally Andrew would already be standing next to me, but I wasn't worried yet. When he wasn't under my supervision Andrew came late more often than not and so I simply joined the discussion about the homework we had been assigned for the lesson.

A minute before the bell rang to start the lesson we were let in by Professor MacMillan and I shuffled into the classroom behind the rest, glancing over my shoulder before I crossed the threshold. He was cutting it awfully close today, but again, this wasn't unusual for Andrew and I wasn't worried.

Inside the classroom the desks that usually stood in neat rows facing the front had been moved to the side, indicating that it would be a practical lesson. I smiled and threw my bookbag onto one of the desks before joining Leona in the front.

"Today we will be revising your non-verbal casting," Professors MacMillan's authoritative voice filled the room as he strode to the front and stopped next to his desk. "But first: Attendance, as usual. You know how this works."

He picked up a battered scroll and turned to face them. He read down our names and we answered with bored 'here's. I turned towards the door a couple of times as MacMillan rattled on. Andrew could still make it if he was sneaky enough, but that hardly ever worked on MacMillan. I considered morphing my voice to sound like Andrew's and answering for him, but that had already gotten us into multiple detentions in the past.

And so, when MacMillan called out "Parker" he was met by silence. He glanced up from the battered parchment and searched the group for him, his eyebrows furrowed. "Has anyone seen Mister Parker?"

His gaze turned to me and I shrugged.

Instead, Kelly Gardener spoke up. "He was with us in Potions this morning, Professor, but I haven't seen him since. He missed lunch, though."

MacMillan nodded. "Do you know if he was feeling ill, Miss Gardener?"

"I don't think so. He seemed fine in Potions, but I could be wrong."

"Very well, we'll just start without Mister Parker. Now, wands out!"

I kept glancing towards the door over the next couple of minutes, wondering where Andrew was. This was stretching even his time limit for coming late. I wondered if he'd been attacked in the corridors as we were in first and second year, but I quickly dismissed it. It was a reflex, jumping to that conclusion, but it hadn't happened for years now. Nobody whacked us anymore, he probably just forgot or misjudged his timing once again.

Thoughts of Andrew were soon replaced by the lesson. As red stunners started crashing into blue shield charms my concentration was diverted to Leona, who was throwing stunners rapidly in my direction.

Halfway into the lesson there was a knock on the door and a scrawny third year Gryffindor popped his head into the classroom. "Professor MacMillan?"

Slowly the sound of jinxes and shields died down and we all turned to face the door.

"Yes, Mister Smith. What is it?" Professor MacMillan strode to the front of the classroom and waited for the Gryffindor to talk.

"Professor Flitwick sent me, sir. Told me to give you this," and he held up a scroll of parchment which MacMillan took from him.

"Thank you, Mister Smith. Stay a moment while I read this…".

We all waited expectantly as he read the letter, which took him quite some time. I suspect he read it twice. Finally, he looked up. "You may return to you class, Mister Smith," he said before he turned to us. "Ahem… All of you who take Advanced Potions and the Ravenclaws," he said as he looked up from the parchment. "You're to go to Professor Flitwick's charms classroom immediately. You too, Mister Lupin. The rest of you continue with your exercise."

Everybody started murmuring as we gathered our things, utterly confused. When we left the class room I caught up with Kelly.

"Hey," I asked. "do you know what's going on?"

"No clue," she replied, shaking her head. "I wonder why MacMillan asked the Ravenclaws and those in potions. And you," she added as an afterthought.

I simply nodded, though I was already forming ideas in my mind and the closer we got to the Charms corridor, the more certain I was that it had something to do with Andrew. When we got there, there were already a number of other 7th years there, including Keith. As we approached he got up and came over to me, a worried look on his face.

"Ted."

"Hey Keith," I nodded. "You know what this is about?"

He shrugged his shoulders and his face looked concerned. "Mora less. They didn tell us anythin, but it's only the potions folk here and the 'claws. We reckn it's about Andrew."

I sighed, getting increasingly worried. "Yeah, I think so too. He didn't show up for Defence."

"Any idea what happened?"

I simply shook my head. "No clue. I haven't seen him since our race this morning. Though he did seem a bit off…" Andrew and I always got up early and raced on our brooms across the grounds in the mornings as a work out.

"Merlin, what's the bugger done now to get half of seventh year pulled out of class?" Keith let out a long breath.

A heavy clot of dread seemed to form at the bottom of my stomach and it got worse with every second that passed. I started shifting from one foot to the other and ran my hand through my hair.

Keith snorted. "Mate, yer hair's yellow."

"What… Oh, right," I scrunched up my nose and morphed it back to turquoise, though I knew that it would be back to yellow in a few minutes. One of the setbacks of being a Metamorphagus, we wear our emotions on our sleeves.

"Do you know what we're waiting here for, anyway?" I asked.

"Flitwick said he wanted to question us. Neil's in there now."

I was about to question him further when the classroom door opened and Neil, one of Keith's roommates, stepped out followed by Flitwick and a young woman in red Ministry robes. I felt as if someone had emptied a bucket of iced water on my head. What was an auror doing at Hogwarts, questioning us?

"Thank you, Mister Branson, that would be all. Now don't dawdle, you'll have plenty of time to talk to your friends after class."

Neil shot us an apologetic look as he was ushered out, heading down the corridor instead of telling us what had happened. All of us looked as if we wanted to pounce on him, but we stayed where we were, all eyes following his progress down the hall.

When he turned the corner, Flitwick spoke up once more. "Mister Donnelly, you're next."

I clapped Keith on the shoulder and gave him a weak smile before he followed Flitwick and the auror into the room. As soon as the door closed, the whispering started up again.

One after the other people were invited into the classroom and ushered out again. Professor Flitwick always made sure that everybody left before he asked the next one in and so the agonizing wait continued for me. Most of the questionings took about ten minutes, but it varied. Those from advanced potions who weren't in Ravenclaw could leave fairly quickly, while most Ravenclaws had longer interviews. Andrew's dormmates all stayed in for at least twenty minutes.

After a while, everybody settled down. Some took out their homework, while others stood in groups and continued to chat. I just sat on the bench and worried.

In the end, I was the last to be interviewed. By now I was quite worried about Andrew and when they opened the door I nearly ran into the room, eager for information. Flitwick led me to a wooden table with three chairs that had been set up in the aisle in the centre of the classroom where he normally demonstrated new charms.

The auror stood up to greet me and I shook her hand. "Hello Mister Lupin. My name is auror Jones."

"Hello."

"I'm sorry for the long wait, but my superior wants to be present when we speak with you. He should be here any minute now."

I was surprised and asked before thinking. "Harry's coming?"

Auror Jones merely smiled at me. "Yes, Auror Potter wanted to ask you a few questions personally."

I just nodded, not really knowing how to react. On the one hand I always enjoyed seeing Harry, but that was when he wasn't working. If he took time out of his job to ask me questions about Andrew, it meant that something really serious had happened.

"Merlin, Andrew, what have you done?" I thought.

We waited for a couple of minutes more until the door opened and Harry strode in. his robes were billowing behind him as he strode purposefully towards us, his mouth stretched in a grim line.

I stood to greet him and he gave me a quick embrace before he walked around the desk and sat down. He then addressed Professor Flitwick. "Professor, would you mind if I speak with my godson privately?"

Flitwick turned to his former student. "Of course! I'll wait in the corridor until you're done," And he walked from the room along with Auror Jones.

Harry turned and looked me straight in the eyes. His shoulders were squared and his left hand held a piece of parchment in place while his right hovered over it with a quill grasped in it. It was clear that in that moment I wasn't his godson, but rather a suspect.

"Teddy, do you know why you're here?" his voice was calm, but had an authoritative undertone.

"Not really, nobody's told us anything. What's going on?"

Harry merely nodded. "Okay, first, you're not in trouble. It's about your friend Andrew."

I let out a breath I didn't know I'd been holding in. "What did he do?"

Harry kept his gaze on my, judging my reaction as he said what had happened. "Andrew attacked five people: Professor McGonagall, a Ministry employee and a student with her parents. He then fled to London and was last seen on a train to Paris. On that train he fled from aurors, breaking the statute of secrecy in the progress. Aurors are searching for him throughout the country."

I slumped in my chair, utterly confused. It was nothing like anything I expected. It made no sense whatsoever. Why would Andrew do something like that? It was completely averse to his nature. He was normally calm, reasonable. And he never attacked someone, he only struck back when he was forced to.

In the end I could only stammer. "What? Why? Why…would he?"

Harry stared at me carefully a few seconds longer before sighing. "You really didn't know, did you?"

"Know what?" I snapped back. I was starting to get angry. My best friend was in trouble and nobody was telling me anything.

"Did Andrew at least tell you about his betrothal to Elizabeth Greengrass?"

And again, I felt like someone had emptied a bucket of iced water over me. A few things clicked into place then. He'd been unnaturally quiet and tense for the last few days. Also, his reaction to the situation made more sense now. He'd been nervous about the whole betrothal law since it went into effect last year, we'd talked about it a number of times. I'd never been as nervous as him about it, but we both knew that as Harry Potter's godson and honorary Weasley the Ministry wasn't likely to target me. Nevertheless, I couldn't help but feel betrayed that he hadn't told me.

I let my gaze drop to the floor and said in a calm, quiet voice: "No, he didn't tell me."

It was silent for a few seconds before I looked up at Harry. His gaze was sympathetic now and his tone was no longer as cold as it had been before.

"All right. We thought he might have confided in you, or that you'd worked this scheme out together." He was silent for a moment before he leaned forwards once more, imploring me. "But Teddy, do you know where he might be headed? How will he try to escape? Anything will help."

He looked at me imploringly, but I hesitated. I wasn't going to sell out my best friend to anybody.

"Teddy, I know you want to protect Andrew, but you know that it's only going to get worse for him. He's already facing charges for assaulting a ministry official and breaking the statute of secrecy. He's putting himself and others in danger and all we want, is him safe and sound."

It was a difficult decision. I knew that Harry was probably right. Andrew's chances of escaping were slim and it would only get worse. On the other hand, I just couldn't betray Andrew, that simply wasn't an option. Although lying to Harry wasn't either. First, I could never do that to Harry, and secondly, Harry could read me like a book anyway.

"Andrew's smart. He probably isn't going to rush things or just make a run for it, he's going to think things through. And he knows his way around muggle and magical ways of travelling, so you've got to cover every possible way out. He's going to stay low key in the muggle world until he makes his move, he probably won't even use his wand, so you won't find him with magical sensors. And you said he was headed for France?"

Harry nodded.

"Well, you know he's Swiss. He's heading home. He knows the Swiss won't send him back… That's all I can tell you."

Harry scrutinized me again, looking for any sign that I was holding back information. "You sure that's all you know?"

I nodded.

He sighed. "I was hoping for something more Teddy. You know perfectly well that we've already figured out what you just told us. Andrew has stayed with us over the holidays, after all." He kept his gaze fixed on me.

"Sorry, that's all I know," I wasn't going to give them anything they couldn't figure out for themselves.

"Okay, send me an owl if you can think of anything else." He got up and stepped around the table once more. He hugged me and smiled as he let go. "And don't worry too much about Andrew. We'll find him soon and do our best to make sure he gets back safe and sound."

"What will happen to him if you catch him?"

Harry grimaced slightly. "We'll have to charge him with assault and breaking the statute, but he's a first-time offender. He'll have to pay a fine and if he gets a strict ruling he might even have to spend a few days in prison, though given the circumstances he'll probably get a mild ruling. He'll still have to marry the Greengrass girl though."

"Will he be expelled?"

"Maybe… that's up to the board to decide."

Slowly we walked to the door, both of us silent. I could tell that Harry still wanted to say something, but he was still looking for the right words. Before we could leave the class room he laid a hand on my shoulder.

"I know this all must have come as a shock to you, considering that Andrew didn't warn you," he paused, "Are you okay?"

I sighed. "Yeah… I'm fine. It's just…" again I paused, looking for words. "It's just so unexpected, that's all. He seemed fine this morning. Everything seemed fine and now he's just gone. I'll be fine."

Harry regarded me for a few seconds more and then nodded. "I know you will. And we'll have him back here soon, safe and sound."

I tried to smile, though I think it turned out as more of a grimace. Harry then turned to the door and we stepped into the corridor.

"I'll see you at Christmas Ted. Don't forget to write."

However, before he could go I held him back by the arm. "Harry…"

"Yes Teddy?"

"Could you, you know, keep me up to date on Andrew?"

He looked at me for a long second. "You know I can't tell you everything, but I'll pass on what I can."

Relieved, I smiled slightly. "Thank you."

"You're welcome."

After that he left down the corridor and I made my way back to the Hufflepuff common room.


End file.
